Metro Bank (MTRO) is facing questions over its future as the shock failure of a £200m bond sale sent shares crashing to a new record low. The stock plummeted 30% today after it was forced to cancel the fundraising due to a lack of investor interest. Analysts warned the debacle could leave Metro unable to meet a Bank of England deadline for securing extra cash at the start of next year. It is a fresh blow for the credibility of the embattled lender, which stunned investors in January when bosses revealed it had miscalculated the riskiness of a string of property loans.
The boss of the Hong Kong stock exchange has admitted he would reject his own takeover offer if he was running the London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) as he put forward his arguments in a public “boxing match” between the two chiefs. David Schwimmer and Charles Li, the respective heads of the LSE and HKEX, took to the stage at an influential finance conference in London on Tuesday to get their points across just over a week after London rejected Hong Kong’s approach. Answering questions from an interviewer who said he felt like he was refereeing a “boxing match”, Mr Li acknowledged that now was not the best time to make a proposal for the British bourse and said he wished he made the bid earlier.
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) is parting ways with yet another director just days after its finance chief said he was leaving. Gordon Mowat, who is head of supply chain and logistics for the firm’s troubled clothing and home arm, has been pushed out after two years in the role. Mr Mowat is to be replaced, for now, by chief executive Steve Rowe’s executive assistant Stephen Fitzgerald. The move comes after clothing and home boss Jill McDonald was ousted in July, and just days after it emerged that Humphrey Singer, M&S’s chief financial officer, is leaving the business.
Neil Woodford is gearing up to ditch his entire stake in IP Group (IPO), just two weeks after the company blamed the troubled fund manager for its sluggish half-year performance. Mr Woodford is understood to be offloading his entire 13% stake, worth more than £86m as per the firm’s closing share price, to other institutional shareholders after the market close on Tuesday. The sale will be overseen by Bank of America Merrill Lynch as well as brokers at Berenberg and Numis. Mr Woodford’s 142m shares in IP Group were held in his shuttered Equity Income Fund.
Barr (A.G.) (BAG) posted a “disappointing” first-half after the sugar tax and wet summer weather delivered a blow to sales and profits. The company reported a 10.5% fall in sales to £122.5m in the six months to July 27 as it struggled against last year’s soaring temperatures. Profits tumbled by more than a quarter to £13.5m during the period, as AG Barr blamed “complex” pricing changes relating to the sugar tax. It comes after the Scottish company warned in July that profits would come in lower than expected. AG Barr called the results “disappointing”.
The boss of Moss Bros Group (MOSB) said its new eco suit was not “a marketing gimmick” as revenues edged up at the retailer, but losses widened. Chief executive Brian Brick said: “Business people have a responsibility [to look into sustainability]. We do believe there is an issue. It’s not a marketing gimmick, it’s real.” The £169 eco suit is made from recycled polyester-blend cloth and canvas; the retailer claims the fabric is made from up to 45 plastic bottles that would otherwise go to landfill. Moss Bros saw its sales rise to £65.3m from £64.4m, for the half year to the end of July, while losses went from £1.7m to £2.7m. However, like-for-like sales, which strip out new stores, increased by 1.4%. The company scrapped its interim dividend to protect its coffers.
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) is remaining cautious about a possible boost from the demise of Thomas Cook and said its business model was proving “resilient” despite a “challenging market”. The company stood by its financial targets for the year to September on Tuesday, but chief executive Friedrich Joussen struck a muted tone in what one analyst called a “downbeat” update. Tui warned its markets and airlines unit faced “a number of ongoing external challenges such as the grounding of the 737 Max aircraft, airline overcapacities and continued Brexit uncertainty”. The company did not provide any update on the possible opportunity to increase market share or raise prices following the failure of Thomas Cook.
